Friday, August 12, 2016

APPRECIATION | Mary C. Warren, one of the most accomplished public servants in East Bay history and a trailblazer for women in local government, died Aug. 6. She was 94. Flags at Alameda County facilities were ordered to be flown at half-staff this week.

Following eight years in the U.S. Navy as a supply officer at the Aviation Supply Depot in Oakland, she rose through the ranks of the U.S. Postal Service and was appointed Deputy Director of Personnel for the U.S. Post Office by President John F. Kennedy. Later, Warren was named by President Lyndon Johnson to the Civil Rights Commission.

Warren's lone foray in electoral politics included two terms on the East Bay Municipal Utilities District Board of Directors from 1982-1990, but working behind the scene suited her better. Upon her passing, Warren was currently serving as a commissioner on the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Joint Powers Authority, which oversees the publicly-owned stadiums.

She served as chair of the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee from 1976 through 1986, in addition, to her a two-year appointment as vice chair of the California Democratic Party in 1982. In the 1970s and 1980s, Warren held a variety of staff positions in the offices of state Sen. Nick Petris, U.S. Sen. John Tunney and Assemblymember Floyd Mori.

"The list of title and accolades Mary received over her lifetime is immense, and fully warranted, but it only speaks to a mere fraction of the impact and legacy she leaves behind," said Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty. "She was a legend decades before her final years, and I feel deeply honored to have known her."

Warren was also the first women to chair the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.

Services for Warren while be held Saturday, Aug. 13, 1 p.m. at St. Augustine Catholic Church, Pleasanton.